The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages provides for a monitoring mechanism to evaluate how the Charter is applied in a State Party with a view to, where necessary, making recommendations for improvements in its legislation, policy and practice. The central element of the monitoring mechanism is a Committee of independent experts, established in accordance with Article 17 of the Charter.

Each State Party must submit a periodical report to the Secretary General every three years, explaining their policies and the action they have taken to fulfil the commitments they have undertaken. The reports must be drafted according to the outlines adopted by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, which set out the structure of the state reports. These reports are published and may be obtained from the states concerned and from the Council of Europe.

Once it has considered the Committee of Experts’ report, the Committee of Ministers may decide to make it public. It may also decide to make recommendations to states with a view to their taking the necessary action to bring their policies, legislation and practice into line with their obligations under the Charter.After the publication of an evaluation report, the Council of Europe may organise a Charter Implementation Roundtable in the State Party concerned. This follow-up meeting is chaired by a member of the Committee of Experts and offers an opportunity for representatives of the authorities and the minority associations to discuss concrete steps towards the implementation of the monitoring recommendations. In 2009, for example,
a roundtable took place in the Assembly of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina in Novi Sad (Serbia).